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  In the beginning, there was nothing but pure emptiness, a void without a living soul, save for one. In the skies, there was one great being that formed the darkness. He was Khan, the lord of all that was, of the night, of the skies, and of the stars. His midnight black pelt formed the sky itself, his three eyes, the brilliant moons, and on his pelt were encrusted glimmering shards of ice and stone, forming the great stars above. Khan, though proud and mighty, grew lonely ruling the skies alone, and tired of his eyes and coat shining without anyone to witness their glory and praise their light. So from his coat, he scratched an immense pile of the glimmering stones and ice, and with them formed a great sphere to provide land for his followers to walk on. On this sphere, he carved creatures of ice and stone in the likeness of his image – massive bat-like wings, to serve him in the sky, long muzzles, through which they could praise him, thick manes of fur to keep them warm so as to not return to their frozen states, four legs, so as to dance for him, two long ears to listen to his words, and two gleaming eyes, to take in his mighty glory. The final gift he bestowed upon them was a shining blade on the end of a long tail, to take down whomever may decide to oppose him, for only he could be great, and could never be challenged. Each of these beings was intelligent, clever, and, as they were created from his image, bared Khan’s selfish personality, so it wasn’t very long before each began to argue with the other.
“I am the greatest, for stone stands strong and unbreakable, and cannot be moved by another’s will,” cried Stone, standing before Ice with fangs bared and tail raised, heated with selfish pride, ego, and a fierce temper. Neither he nor ice would be satisfied until one admitted the other was greater, and neither had the will to give in.
“No, I am the greatest, for ice can freeze time itself, allowing no stone to move; no being to shift at their own will,” Cried Ice, before charging at Stone and his kin, with others of ice beside her.
Stone cracked and ice shattered, as echoes of snarls crying and blades crashing rang through the night air, rising to Khan’s mighty ears. Seeing the quarreling between his creations infuriated him, for only he should be fought over as the greatest, not those below him. It had become out of his hands, he realized, as his cries over the land were unheard through the deafening clatter of battle below. And so, he released the brightest of his eyes into his mighty paws, and from it he created S’feena, meaning in the ancient tongue “she of warm light”. S’feena was given two gifts to aid Khan. The first gift was of creation, with which she could weave stories of his greatness, and miracles to strengthen their worship of him. The second gift he bestowed upon her was the gift of heart. With Heart, combined with Creation, she could calm the fury between Stone and Ice with her soothing, kind words. But Heart was more than Khan had realized, for not even he could know the extent of his power. Heart was not only a gift that gave warmth and calmed, but it needed warmth and happiness in return, for without it, it would whither and die. So over time, with only the company of the self-centered inhabitants of the world, S’feena grew weak and lonely, and her light began to dim. Her warm heart had begun to turn cold, and a hatred for the cold world and the being that created it slowly grew. It was one evening that Khan was resting his mighty eyes that S’feena slipped away in the darkness, to a part of the world yet untouched. To the empty night, she wove tales of a beautiful world over the cold stone world that was through mystical howlsong; howlsong so beautiful that the tales took form and life, filling the world with life and color. Plants sprung from the ground to create colors to shine, cleanliness, and soft ground to tread upon. She created creatures great and small to tend to the plants and to each other, and molded the land like clay with abstract beauty. And finally, she created the 3 light elements, which spread across the world like a blanket, and the 3 beings that ruled over them. First was Fire, who was given the gift of warmth, light, as well as a great burning power, to protect and cleanse the land. Next was Water, who was given the gift of movement and life, for from that moment on no being would survive without its presence. And finally, she created Air, whom held the gift of voice, song, and became the alpha of the light elements, for Air alone could strengthen them and give them power. The elements they ruled spread across the world, and each stood in a land ruled by its element, keeping the balance throughout the world.
Khan awoke with a furious rage, for nothing could be greater than what he created, and his world had been at the state of utmost perfection in his eyes before it was coated in un-needed life. Life that didn’t serve him was worthless, he proclaimed, and he sent the army of his followers and creations across the land, destroying all that lay in their path in search of S’feena. But S’feena hid herself in the skies, and cried out for her children to stop them. Fire, Air, and Water loved her dearly, and loved the land she had created, and so rushed to oppose them without hesitation. But it was a greater challenge than they had expected, for fire could not exist in darkness, water in ice, or wind in stone – each had their perfect opposite, and they were evenly matched. For years the elements clashed unmoving to a point of exhaustion, until S’feena finally gathered the courage to return. She appeared to Air in a time of rest, and bestowed upon him renewed power, even greater than he’d had when born.
“With this,” she cried, “you can give strength to brother Fire and sister Water, and expand their forces across the land, as well as your own, to drive back the darkness. The land will be filled with light at last!”
And so it was, as Air, with renewed strength, blew a mighty gust through Fire and Water and spread them across the land. A rallying cry rang out, and the forces returned to the lands torn by battle to finish what had begun. But Khan, with his mighty gleaming eyes, had seen S’feena’s efforts. The forces of light came to meet an equally massive force of darkness. Most were carved from stone and ice as Khan’s first creations had been, but in the front of the line stood those with pelts darker than all the others, woven from Khan’s very midnight fur, their eyes gleaming crystals of ice. The largest of them, Kriir, stepped forth, until he was nose to nose with Air.
“I have come from the land of the night sky to punish those who have opposed Great Lord Khan, for I alone have all his power. You cannot win.”
But there were no words to move Air, and he stood silently, with gleaming ferocity in his endless eyes, a gaze so deep that Kriir had to step back, so as to not fall in.
After what could have been days of cold stares, each side sizing up the other, the two alliances charged into battle with a mighty roar, with their creators gleaming overhead, bestowing their power down upon their land to strengthen each of their forces. But each would tire, their light vanishing from the skies for hours at a time, for not even creators had infinite power. And now, to this very day, each creator rises and falls with their strength to watch over their mighty forces, battling for the fate of the world that came to be known as Dreyrull, a word meaning everlasting. For it didn’t matter how long and hard these creatures fought upon its surface, the world continued to live, grow, and shine in its place amongst the universe.
And so it was told, the aershaa, mighty beasts of the elements, were the very soul of the world itself. Whether it was a time of peace or chaos, it all depended on their harmony. Ah, but don’t take my word for it. Come. Let me take you to the time when one single soul, one single aershaa, saved this world, and restored the balance to us all…
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